contemporary

No Strings Attached by Reece Butler

Posted on by Dirty Girl Anne

No Strings Attached (MFM)

Grade: C+
Hotness Level: Inferno
Kink Level: Moderate Kink
Genre: BDSM, Contemporary, Menage
Series: Climax, Montana #4
Published: June 2014
Reviewed by Kate

Lila is taking over the ranch while her parents head out on a cruise.  She’s out to prove to everyone that she’s got what it takes.  When Jet and Houston come along looking to hire on as ranch hands, they’re just what the doctor ordered-both for the ranch and for Lila’s sex life.

The main thing that bothered me with this one was that Lila’s parents-Matt, Eric, and Nikki-and her aunt and uncles-Simon, Lance, and Marci-were so open with everyone about her budding relationship with Jet and Houston.  It was a little squick-inducing to hear them tell her to go at it. And to hear them tell Jet and Houston that she needed to be spanked.

I also didn’t really care for the fact that Beth Elliot (an ancestor of Lila and the heroine from Barefoot Bride for Three which took place in 1870) was still in this one, coming back as a spirit. The woman’s dead and buried.  Let her be.  I loved her in her book, but her popping up in the Climax series of books is stretching my boundaries of believability.

This one was filled with everything that I’ve come to love and expect from a Reece Butler read-steamy, hot sex and romance that tugs at my heartstrings.  I’m still enjoying the books, but I would like to see what Reece could do with a different series.  As much as I like the Bride Train series and the Climax, Montana series, I’m ready for something new.

 

 

One Sexy Ride by Vivian Arend

Posted on by Dirty Girl Anne
20983760
Grade: C+
Hotness Level: Inferno
Kink Level: No Kink
Genre: Contemporary
Series: Thompson & Sons #2
Published: 6/19/14
Reviewed by Anne
156 pages
 
Len is the quiet brother in his family.  He’s never had a serious relationship and doesn’t want one.
 
Janey is an outcast in her  family.  Instead of going away to college after high school, she’s learned her trade and is becoming well known in her home town for her remodeling and fix-it all skills.  She’s always had a crush on Len, her best friend’s quiet older brother.  She’s flirted with him for years.  She’s a little confused when he finally decides he’s ready to date her, but she’ll go for it!
 
I have such conflicted feelings about this story. I loved the characters and liked the story, but lots of details bothered me.  On the good side, Len may not talk a lot, but when he does, it’s good – Len is a dirty talker!  Janey is confident in herself, and I enjoy reading characters like her.  Even though she was forging a path different than the rest of her family and what they wanted her to do, she knew she was good at what she was doing and she was enjoying it.  She always had a thing for Len, but it wasn’t embarrassing for either of them.  Just feelings he never returned. They were friends and neither felt bitter about that.
 
I had two big problems with the story.  The first was that I was confused on a few different plot points.  For example, early in the story, Len decides he’s ready to date  Janey, but he never really says why.  Later he mentions (not to Janey) that  he heard she’s going to be moving out of town, so he’s planning a short term relationship with her.  When I read that, I wondered if she really was planning on leaving town.  I think it mentioned it in the book blurb, but I tend not to trust them.  Janey herself didn’t mention those plans, and Len never discussed it with Janey, so I wondered if it was gossip or an assumption he’d made.  It wasn’t until quite late in the book that the subject was cleared up, and it was unsettling to be left hanging like that.
 
Another example of this confusion is that Len makes a major revelation about himself to Janey, and it caught me so off guard that I initially wondered if he was kidding.  When it turned out to be true later in the story I was almost surprised.  Probably either of these situations alone wouldn’t have bothered me, but to have this confusion as a reader more than once makes me think it wasn’t just me.
 
Unfortunately, I also had a very big problem with what was at the heart of Len’s issues.  I don’t want to spoil anything, so I’ll just say I don’t think his big traumatic thing would have happened like it did.  When I read it, it just pulled me out of the story, and made me think “This author has never been in this situation.”  Either that or her experiences were light years away from anything I’ve seen.
 
So, I had some issues with the story, and despite great sex scenes and characters, it was just ok for me.  I’ll read more by Vivian Arend, though.  I’m curious to hear if anyone else has read this book if they had the same experience, or if it was just me!

Then Came You by Jill Shalvis

Posted on by Dirty Girl Anne

Grade: A
Hotness Level: Blaze
Kink Level: No Kink
Genre: Contemporary
Series: Animal Magnetism #5
Published: 7/1/14
Reviewed by Anne
186 pages

I’ll be honest, the past couple Shalvis books I’ve read just haven’t worked for me. They were ok, but not wonderful. Well, this one, Then Came You, was WONDERFUL! This is my favorite Shalvis book ever!

Emily has a PLAN for her life. Having a plan has helped her survive some really tough years. Now she’s finished veterinary school and is on to the one year internship that came with her scholarship. Unfortunately, it’s not in L.A. like she planned. Nope. She’s in Sunshine, Idaho. So she’s altered her plan and is counting down the 365 days before she can get back on track.

Wyatt is one more thing she didn’t plan on. He was a one night stand at a convention a few months ago, and now… he’s her supervisor. This probably shouldn’t be a problem. They’re both professionals, after all. But he’s really cute, and he wears funny tshirts, and she thinks he’s hot looking no matter what he’s wearing. And then there’s the blisteringly hot chemistry that keeps popping up and they just can’t deny. They both know the score, though. Wyatt’s looking for roots and permanency. Emily is doing her time and moving on. They just need to remember not to fall for each other.

If you’ve read a few of my reviews, you know that I like low conflict contemporary romance. Lauren Dane’s Brown Siblings series is one of my favorites. This book is a lighter, funnier version of that kind of romance, and I loved it! Emily and Wyatt actually talk to each other (most of the time.) They have messed up lives and siblings and friends. And as always in a Jill Shalvis book, the humor and the dialog shine!
“You do realize that I totally blame you,” she said, breaking the silence.
“For?”
“Sitting there wearing a goofy-ass tie, driving like you do everything else, which is so stupid sexy I can’t think.”
He swiveled his amused gaze her way. “Anything else?”
She blew out a breath. “Fine. Mock me. Just…keep your hands to yourself.”
He lifted them in a surrender.
“And your mouth.”
Said mouth quirked, and he mimed zipping it closed.
God, she was out. Of. Control. She covered her face with her hands and took a deep breath. “I’m going in now.”
She didn’t go in.
“This is so ridiculous,” she finally whispered.
She felt his fingers grip hers. He lowered her hands from her face. “It’s fine,” he said. “You don’t want anything to happen, nothing’s going to happen.”
She stared at him. “It’s not.”
“Well, not unless you want it to, and then instigate things in a big way.”
…
That was when she lost her tenuous hold on her sanity, reaching for him at the same time he tugged. She landed in his lap, straddling him. “Hi,” she said against his lips. “I’m instigating.”

This story was hot, sweet, and funny! I highly recommend it and it’s going on my best of the year list! I’ll add that I read the first two books in this series a couple of years ago and then just lost track of it for a while. So I basically read this story as a stand alone, and it does just fine. If it’s the first one in this series you’ll have no trouble jumping in.

So how about you? What’s your favorite Jill Shalvis book? Or if you haven’t read any Shalvis stories, who is your favorite contemporary romance author?